Known safety net arrangements, such as shown in DE 43 36 380 C2, have an elongated housing provided with a run-out slot extending in a longitudinal direction. In the housing, a winding shaft is rotatably supported whereby one edge of a safety net is secured thereto. The other edge of the safety net is connected to a tension rod or pull out member which, when the safety net is in its wound up position, lies on the run-out slot and prevents further winding-up. The pull out member serves as an anchor when the safety net is tensioned and secured in the interior of the vehicle.
With the aid of a spring mounted within the housing and connected to the winding shaft, the winding shaft is biased in a wind-up direction. The length of the safety net in the unwound state generally is such that no significant supply of safety net remains on the winding shaft when the pull out or tension member is suspended in the vehicle.
If in the event of a collision of the vehicle objects present in the loading or trunk compartment of the passenger car are flung against the tensioned safety net and a small residual amount of the safety net will unwind from the winding shaft. This residual amount is necessary in order to accommodate tolerances in the car body within which the safety net is installed. The residual amount is so small, however, that no appreciable ballooning of the net occurs which could impair the protective functioning of the safety net. In other words, it will not allow the object to penetrate too far into the passenger space.
Such safety nets are needed not only when the rear seat bench of a station wagon is set upright, but when, for the purpose of increasing the cargo space capacity, the rear seat back is laid down. In this case, the housing of the safety net arrangement is at a much greater distance from the roof and correspondingly a greater length of safety net is necessary in order to provide the desired functioning. Conversely this means that with the back seat upright, the tensioned safety net amount would still be too great for a the usual effect. The objects flung into the net would unwind this great amount of safety net from the winding shaft so that there would arise a large balloon extending into the passenger space.
In order to avoid this ballooning effect in the case of an incompletely drawn-off safety net, it is known to provide on the run-slot of the housing a comb-like structure. This comb springs back opposite the plane in which the safety net is normally moved in drawing-out from the housing in order to hamper the pulling-out of the safety net as much as possible. The object flying into the safety net causes the safety net to be pressed against this comb so that the comb teeth hook in the meshes of the safety net.
Such arrangement has substantial disadvantages. First, when drawing out the safety net, it is not always ensured that the safety net will engage and be stuck in the comb teeth. Further, as a result of such engagement, when it does occur, wear or possible damage can occur to the net, which causes the net to age prematurely. A further substantial disadvantage lies in impairment of the safety net. It cannot be avoided that the comb teeth in a collision accident possibly cut through the threads of the safety net or cause them to tear, which creates the danger of failure of the safety net.